The Simurg
A mysterious being inhabits the Veil. It has been referred to as the Bird, the Eye of the Bird, the Bird King, the Simurg, and Chapter 8 the Custodian . This creature is so enigmatic that it is difficult to form conclusions about it. The following is a collection of evidence regarding the Simurg and its nature. Evidence Memories During a hypnotism session with Dr. Wakefield, Devitt recalled seeing an eye: It was like an eye, perfectly rounded and dark. Deep and empty, accompanied by the most horrifying, pain-filled screams I've ever heard. Inside, a complete darkness where an evil dwells deep below. A forgotten fear for human reasoning but undoubtedly, still rests deep down inside our being. In my case, that fear has already awoken. It's very hard to describe. Something beyond human logic. He was bathed in darkness. Not a darkness of shadow but of malice. A sinister force, lying in wait. It communicates not in a language of the human tongue but in a language of fear. The tendrils of this fear creep and entangle my soul, swallowing me within the maw of its darkness. I resist yet am drawn to the eye. At the end of the chapter, Father Ernest described seeing a bird’s eye in the Veil: It was our curiosity that damned us. We opened that which should not be opened. In doing so, we shorn The Veil that separated our world from His. In seeking vision we were ourselves seen by the Eye of the Bird… The Eye of the Bird saw us, it remembers us, it looks for us, it calls us from its dark nest, from its abominable lair. All these years I have attempted to return to it but I have no strength left. The Four Witnesses A violin player told Devitt, In the fog we haven't eyes but we count on our ears. To find your way, you must search the Simurg. When Devitt looked through a keyhole into a bookshop, he briefly saw a bird's eye staring back at him. When Devitt asked the Shadowbook reader about the Simurg, he responded, Simurg... Simurg... Ahh, yes, The Bird King. There is a book of ancient poetry here that makes mention of him. I'm sure you can find it here somewhere. Devitt eventually found the book. He remarked, On the ground lies a book entitled "The Songs of Zhai-La." The page to which it was open has been torn out but the remaining fragment identifies a song title: 'The Search for Simurg'. The words of the song First into the wind, they sought for the King. But lost were the birds; they wept in suffering And flew to the sea, compelled by a need. They found there silence; their quest was complete. At the end of the chapter, Alexandre also mentioned a powerful bird. The Bird protects us. It is by his design that we should meet again. But we are not the only ones who take shelter beneath his wings… His influence and power is ever expanding, ever reaching. Do you not feel him beckoning? Secrets According to the Master of the Occult Guide by Za Warudo, the mysterious bearded man turns into a flock of crows. When you meet the lady that reads tarot cards, fill up the lantern before going to the area in front of the house that leads to the fog. Once you have filled up the lantern go to the house and follow the man inside, then go straight to the garden of the house to see his shadow turn into crows and fly away. Ancient Shadows When Devitt and Alexandre returned to the Veil, Alexandre mentioned the bird again: Alexandre: I am waiting for you. Here, in the mist... It's nearby... I can hear it. Devitt: What is nearby? What do you hear? Alexandre: I hear the beating of its wings.... It knows we are afraid. My Dearest Visitor In the Professor’s manor, Wakefield found The Book of Birds, which described a king of birds: The birds were travelling to meet their King when they reached a crossroads. The wretched crow tried to lead them astray and onto the path of mists. Beyond the Curtain Chapter 8 In this chapter, the Simurg is described as being a Custodian. Anthony’s father’s journal contained research about the Custodian: My father discovered several ancient myths pertaining to the Veil. They come from a variety of cultures and hence take many different forms. But they all say something similar about what resides near the Threshold. An ancient being that sleeps within the fog, protecting the Door from intruders. A vengeful Custodian… Those tales… they all say that if an intruder ventured too close to the Door, and was seen by what sleeps in the fog... It would pursue the intruders and destroy them, wherever they might hide. There would be few ways to protect themselves from its rage. The Custodian is apparently the sentinel that Captain Skidd and Sergeant Conghill encountered in Majuba Hill. Conghill: It happened during the battle of Majuba Hill - I am sure you have heard of it - in March of 81. The attack of the Boer army had taken us by surprise, and our regiment was forced to split up. We quickly found ourselves alone, just a few men lost on the barren plain… In the cold air of dusk, a thick fog formed quickly, masking everything around us. We could barely see each other. Then, the others started to disappear in the fog, which was getting thicker and thicker. I could still hear their footsteps for a while… then nothing. I called their names aloud, even though I knew I shouldn't. Something about the fog terrified me. I felt something in there, not far. A murmur or a beating, something alive. Waiting. I couldn't help walking towards it. All of a sudden, my feet felt something in the mud. A body. They were all there! Dead. Only Captain Skidd was missing. Then the mist cleared out. Skidd: I will never be able to forget that day. Nobody knew what really happened. Command decided that we must have been ambushed. Now I know better. There was something in that fog. Something that did not like us entering its domain. A... sentinel of some sort. That thing is what killed my soldiers. Devitt and Alexandre described this encounter to the other members of The Playwright: Devitt: Skidd’s results are extraordinary, Anthony. It is the best chance we have of avoiding the gaze of the Custodian. Alexandre: There can be no doubt that the Captain survived an encounter before. He even kept a companion from harm. Skidd agreed to lead The Playwright on an expedition into the Veil, but the Custodian attacked them. This attack took the form of a giant X. As a way of dealing with the trauma of the attack, Hugo made several paintings of the X. When Alexandre recruited Hugo to take part in Professor Wright’s experiments, he mentioned the Custodian again. Wright is eccentric indeed, but I think his thesis may be proven correct. If so, we might have found a way of reaching the Threshold without attracting the attention of the Custodian. A shortcut, you might say. The problem is in the method itself. It has some… unusual requirements. And we would need a man of great sensitivity, who knows the peril of reaching the Door… When exploring Zha’ilathal, Wakefield encountered several shadow creatures. One creature resembled a flock of small birds that combined into a giant bird. At the very end of the chapter, he described the creature as being the Simurg: As I removed my coat, I found a feather in one of the pockets, the same one that I had discovered before being engulfed by the black mass of the Simurg. Near the Simurg/shadow creature, Wakefield found a statue of a mythical creature that bore the inscription, “Thirty Birds.” Other Notes It is conceivable that the Simurg was any or all of the following: * The flock of crows in Chapter 1 * The Mysterious man in Chapter 3 * The flock of crows above Miss Konhe’s hideout in Chapter 5 It’s also conceivable that there is no Simurg, or that it’s more of an abstract concept. The “compulsion” of the Simurg might be simply the compulsion that we feel when we witness a terrible truth. However, that theory does not explain why birds are a common motif. Chapter 8 Wakefield found an enormous black feather in Zha’ilathal and brought it back to London. This could be taken as evidence that a giant bird lives in the Veil. Category:The Veil Category:Beyond Category:Zha'ilathal Category:Beyond the Curtain Category:Major Characters Category:Other Topics